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House Republicans are ready to vote on President Donald Trump’s $4.5 trillion tax breaks and spending cuts bill early Thursday, after staying up all night as GOP leaders and the president himself worked to persuade skeptical holdouts to drop their opposition by his Fourth of July deadline.Final debates began in the predawn hours after another chaotic day, and night, at the Capitol. House Speaker Mike Johnson insisted the House would meet the holiday deadline after the Senate approved Trump’s signature domestic policy package on the narrowest vote.“Our way is to plow through and get it done,” Johnson said, emerging in the middle of the night from a series of closed-door meetings. “We will meet our July fourth deadline.”The outcome would be a milestone for the president and his party, a long shot effort to compile a long list of GOP priorities into what they call his “one big beautiful bill,” an 800-plus page package. With Democrats unified in opposition, the bill will become a defining measure of Trump’s return to the White House, with the sweep of Republican control of Congress. Tax breaks and safety net cuts At it core, the package’s priority is $4.5 trillion in tax breaks enacted in Trump’s first term, in 2017, that would expire if Congress failed to act, along with new ones. This includes allowing workers to deduct tips and overtime pay, and a $6,000 deduction for most older adults earning less than $75,000 a year.There’s also a hefty investment, some $350 billion, in national security and Trump’s deportation agenda and to help develop the “Golden Dome” defensive system over the U.S.To help offset the costs of lost tax revenue, the package includes $1.2 trillion in cutbacks to the Medicaid health care and food stamps, largely by imposing new work requirements, including for some parents and older people, and a massive rollback of green energy investments.The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office estimates the package will add $3.3 trillion to the deficit over the decade and 11.8 million more people will go without health coverage.“This was a generational opportunity to deliver the most comprehensive and consequential set of conservative reforms in modern history, and that’s exactly what we’re doing,” said Rep. Jodey Arrington, R-Texas, the House Budget Committee chairman. Democrats united against ‘ugly bill’ Democrats unified against the bill as a tax giveaway to the rich paid for on the backs of the most vulnerable in society, what they called “trickle down cruelty.”“Have you no shame?” said Rep. Rosa DeLauro, D-Connecticut “Have the moral courage to oppose this bill.”House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries invoked the powerful history of the nation’s Independence Day holiday, and asked: “What does any of that have to do with this one, big ugly bill?”He read for nearly two hours from a binder of letters, written by people across the country explaining how the health care programs have helped their familiesand how devastating cuts would hurt.Hauling the package this far in Congress has been difficult from the start. Republicans have struggled mightily with the bill nearly every step of the way in the House and Senate, often succeeding only by the narrowest of margins: just one vote. In the Senate, Vice President JD Vance broke the tie vote. The slim 220-212 majority in the House leaves Republicans little room for defections. Political costs of saying no But few GOP lawmakers have been fully satisfied with the final product. Several more moderate Republicans had reservations about the cuts to Medicaid health care and the loss of green energy credits that could derail solar, wind, and other renewable projects in their districts.At the same time, conservatives, including those from the House Freedom Caucus, held out for steeper reductions. Republicans had warned the Senate against making changes to the House-passed bill, but senators put their own stamp on the final draft.The House ground to a standstill Wednesday as a handful of holdouts refused to move so quickly. A morning roll call dragged for about seven hours, while an evening vote stalled for more than five, and Trump himself worked the phones and lashed out on social media.“What are the Republicans waiting for??? What are you trying to prove???” Trump railed in a post-midnight vote.Johnson, who has pulled close to Trump, relied on White House officialsincluding Cabinet secretaries, lawyers and othersto work skeptical Republicans through the details. Lawmakers were being told the administration could provide executive actions, projects, or other provisions they needed in their districts back home.“The president’s message was, ‘We’re on a roll,'” said Rep. Ralph Norman, R-South Carolina “He wants to see this.”And the alternative, of bucking the president on his signature second-term package, carried grave political risks.Trump has publicly threatened to campaign against the defectors. One House Republican who has staked out opposition to the bill, Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky, is being targeted by Trump’s well-funded political operation.And Senate Republican Thom Tillis of North Carolina, who had been on the receiving end of Trump’s lashings, announced he would not seek reelection shortly before voting against the bill. Rollback of past presidential agendas In many ways, the package is a repudiation of the agendas of the last two Democratic presidents, a chiseling away at the Medicaid expansion from Barack Obama’s Affordable Care Act, and a pullback of Joe Biden’s climate change strategies in the Inflation Reduction Act.Democrats have described the bill in dire terms, warning that cuts to Medicaid, which some 80 million Americans rely on, would result in lives lost. Food stamps that help feed more than 40 million people would “rip food from the mouths of hungry children, hungry veterans, and hungry seniors,” Jeffries said.Republicans say the tax breaks will prevent a tax hike on households and grow the economy. They maintain they are trying to rightsize the safety net programs for the population they were initially designed to serve, mainly pregnant women, the disabled, and children, and root out what they describe as waste, fraud, and abuse.The Tax Policy Center, which provides nonpartisan analysis of tax and budget policy, projected the bill would result next year in a $150 tax break for the lowest quintile of Americans, a $1,750 tax cut for the middle quintile and a $10,950 tax cut for the top quintile. That’s compared with what they would face if the 2017 tax cuts expired. Associated Press writers Kevin Freking, Joey Cappelletti and Matt Brown contribute. Lisa Mascaro, Mary Clare Jalonick and Leah Askarinam, Associated Press
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If you were looking forward to having some turkey bacon over the July 4th holiday weekend, theres some bad news. The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) has published an active recall notice that affects multiple Kraft Heinz Oscar Mayer turkey bacon products. It is feared that over 360,000 pounds of the products may be contaminated with the potentially life-threatening Listeria monocytogenes bacteria. Heres what you need to know about the nationwide recall. What is the reason for the turkey bacon recall? According to the recall notice posted by the FSIS, the recall is being initiated after laboratory testing at the Kraft Heinz establishment that produces the turkey bacon products, indicating the products could be contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes. What turkey bacon products are being recalled? This recall covers three products. The notice states that approximately 367,812 pounds of the three products are being recalled. Here are the details, according to the recall listing on the FSISs website: 12-ounce vacuum-packed packages of Oscar Mayer Turkey Bacon Original and universal product code (UPC) 071871548601 printed on the packaging under the barcode, with use by dates ranging from 18 July 2025 to 2 August 2025, and lot code RS40. 36-ounce packages containing three 12-ounce vacuum-packed packages of Oscar Mayer Turkey Bacon Original and UPC 071871548748 printed on the packaging under the barcode, with use by dates ranging from 23 July 2025 to 4 September 2025, and lot code RS19, RS40, or RS42. 48-ounce packages containing four 12-ounce vacuum-packed packages of Oscar Mayer Turkey Bacon Original and UPC 071871548793 printed on the packaging under the barcode, with use by dates ranging from 18 July 2025 to 4 September 2025, and lot code RS19, RS40, or RS42. Images of the recalled products in their packaging can be found on the FSIS website. Where was the recalled product sold? The FSIS notice confirms that the recalled products were sold at retail locations nationwide in America. Additionally, some of the products were exported to Hong Kong and the British Virgin Islands. When was the recalled product sold? The turkey bacon products that are being recalled were produced from April 24 through June 11 and so were sold after the originating April date. As noted above, the use by dates for the affected products stretch from July to September, meaning customers may still have the products in their refrigerators or freezers. What is Listeria? According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Listeria is a genus of bacteria that can cause severe illness in infected individuals. In the United States, about 1,600 people are known to be infected every year. But whats worrying about Listeria infections is that they have a high fatality rate. A Listeria infection is the third leading cause of death from a foodborne illness in the U.S., says the CDC. Listeria infections kill around 260 people in the U.S. every year. Have the recalled turkey bacon products harmed anyone? Thankfully, the FSIS notice says that so far, there have been no confirmed reports of people having adverse reactions due to consuming the recalled turkey bacon products. What are the symptoms of a Listeria infection? According to the FSIS, a Listeria infection, known as Listeriosis, can cause a number of symptoms, including: fever muscle aches headache stiff neck confusion loss of balance convulsions The above symptoms can sometimes be preceded by diarrhea or other gastrointestinal symptoms, according to the FSIS. If a person is pregnant, they can be particularly vulnerable to Listeriosis, which can cause miscarriages, stillbirths, and other complications. Older adults and people with weakened immune systems are also at greater risk of more serious complications. What do I do if I have the recalled turkey bacon products? The FSIS says consumers who have the products in their possession should not consume them. Instead, the products should be taken back to their place of purchase for a refund or disposed of. Full details of the turkey bacon recall can be found here.
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E-Commerce
In the week since the New York City mayoral primary, national news reporters, elected officials, and casual observers have been wondering how a little-known, 33-year old state assemblyman beat a former governor of New York for the democratic nomination. To help them out, that candidate did what he has done best throughout his campaign so farhe made a candid, insightful, charming video explaining how he won. The data-packed video, which was viewed over 4.5 million times on X alone in its first 24 hours, features the candidate breaking down how he managed to get an unusually large number of new and infrequent voters to the polls. As he spends a sunny day amid the lush greenery, soaring skyline and vivid graffiti of New York City, Mamdani recounts how his campaign sought out Trump votersnot to lecture, but to listenreached out to election-abstainers, and crafted a message targeting citizens of all stripes who felt ignored by other politicians. Its an illuminating video, perhaps most notable for its transparency, authenticity, humor, and his knowledge of New York cultureall of which have been evident since Mamdani released his first campaign video, a viral joint about the rising cost of halal food, which he dubbed halalflation. The candidate created his videos with Brooklyn-based agency Melted Solids, run by Debbie Saslaw and Anthony DiMieri, who collaborated with videographer Donald Borenstein, campaign photographer Kara McCurdy, and comms director Andrew Bard Epstein. Together, they made campaign material that was as informative as it was accessible, and primed for virality. A typical video, for instance, illustrated exactly what Mamdani plans to do to help small businesses, and precisely why his plans will work, featuring the candidate making his case from within the quintessential New York small business: a deli. @zohran_k_mamdani Small businesses account for over 90% of all companies in NYC and employ nearly half of all workers in the private sector. But the economic outlook for small businesses in New York state is dead last nationwide, and too many in our city are forced to close because staying open costs too much and navigating the bureaucracy is too difficult. That costs New Yorkers their jobs, small business owners their dreams, and our city the places that give it character. Were going to make it faster, easier, and cheaper to start and run a business: Cut fines and fees for small businesses in half Speed up permitting and make online applications easier Increase funding for 1:1 small business support by 500 percent original sound – Zohran Mamdani Other videos attempted to defang some of the arguments used against him. In response to attacks on his plan to make city buses free, he put out a video revealing that the famously free Staten Island ferry used to charge its riders a fee. When people tell you buses cant be free, dont ask them to take a hike, he says in the clip. Ask them to take a ferry. Meanwhile, another factor in the candidates incredible reach has been his willingness to tailor his message to each segment of his audience. We ran a campaign that tried to talk to every New Yorker, Mamdani says in the new video explaining his victory, whether I could speak their language or just tried. Its a reference to a series of dedicated videos in which he pitches himself to voters by speaking in fluent Bengla and Urdu, and in so-so Spanish. Anyone who doubts whether Americans with international backgrounds really care when politicians take the time to speak to them on their own terms need only watch a video clip of the reaction at Bayo, a recent Caribbean music festival at Barclays Center, when Mamdani briefly took the stage and pronounced Haiti the way French and Creole-speaking Haitians wouldayiti. He then talks about two critical issues to Haitians in New Yorkits place among 11 other countries on President Donald Trumps travel ban, and the president ending temporary protected status for Haitian immigrants. @descendants.rec @Zohran Mamdani at the Barclays Center #haiti original sound – DESCENDANTS The masterstroke of Mamdanis campaign, however, may have been when he spent the Friday before the election, June 20, walking the entire length of Manhattan. Over a period of seven and a half hours, he traversed the streets from Inwood Hill to Battery Park, making video content every step of the way. The journey proved a clever opportunity for the andidate to demonstrate how well he knows the city, and how well the citys residents were starting to know him. Its difficult to imagine his key primary opponent, former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who resigned amid several harassment allegations in 2021, and held limited public appearances throughout the primary campaign, being able to replicate this feat. What might be most incredible about Mamdanis videos is the contrast between how the candidate comes across in them and how his loudest critics portray him. Donald Trump, for instance, has taken to calling him a Communist lunatic, adding in a Truth Social post that Mamdani looks TERRIBLE, his voice is grating, [and] hes not very smart. During a press conference on Tuesday, in which he threatened to have Mamdani arrested if he defies ICE as mayor, Trump threw his weight instead behind Mayor Adams, who is running for re-election as an independent. In the same press conference, he suggested Mamdani, a naturalized citizen born in Uganda, was “here illegally. Trump also mentioned having previously helped [Adams] out a little bit, seemingly referring to when the Department of Justice dropped its corruption charges against the mayor back in April. Responding to those moments from the press conference would probably make a great campaign video for Mamdani ahead of the election in Novembernot that his video team needs any help.
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